Turning plagiarism inside out

[Snowy statue in Hamilton, NJ on March 2, 2009]


A recent post on investmentu, related to two articles (one on investmentu and a later one in the NYT), has the line:

Now it’s clear that this isn’t a plagiarism issue, but rather a continuation of the ideas that we brought to life at Investment U. And ultimately, a good idea is a good idea, regardless of where it comes from, or how many people promote it.

Rather than asserting plagiarism (which definitely is NOT involved here), investmentu tries a "reverse passing off" approach, garnering credibility by saying the well-known and credible NYT "continued" the original idea of investmentu. The idea was so good a smart person copied it.

One might ask Eolas "how much" Eolas liked Microsoft copying the work of Eolas. Or the Wright Brothers as to Glenn Curtiss.

The topic for investmentu was Canadian banks, and the NYT article by THERESA TEDESCO discussed Alexander Hamilton a lot.

Canada’s system is the product of a banking framework inspired by Alexander Hamilton, the first American secretary of the Treasury. Hamilton envisioned the First Bank of the United States, chartered in 1791, as a central bank modeled on the Bank of England.

Canadians found inspiration in Hamilton’s model, but not all Americans did. In the 1830s, President Andrew Jackson opposed extending the charter of the Second Bank of the United States, perceiving it as monopolistic. Money-lending functions were then assumed by local and state-chartered banks, eventually giving rise to the free-market, decentralized system that America has today.

Today, Canada’s system remains truer to Hamilton’s ideal. The five major chartered banks, the few regional banks and handful of large insurance companies are all regulated by the federal government.

Both Hamilton and his nemesis Aaron Burr were involved with banks in New York City, the successors in interest survive (Hmm, IPBiz hasn't checked lately). One of the banks still has the set of dueling pistols that led to Hamilton's demise. [Incidentally, Hamilton, NJ is named for Alexander Hamilton.]

***Also on plagiarism -->

A very brief history of plagiarism